Fun Projects for International Quilt Festival

I've been asked to present a couple educational sessions at IQF Chicago, March 26-28, 2015 and Quilt!Knit!Stitch! in Portland, OR, August 13-15, 2015. 

For Open Studio, I demo how I work on my choice of project.  People come and go over the 2 hour time segment, asking questions, basically they "visit" me in my studio and we converse about the process.  For Chicago I'll be showing String Blocks with several different setting/design possibilities:

Half Red/Half Neutral

1" finished black strip in the middle, color on one side, neutral on the other

 

There are lots more possibilities and I'll be working on samples for the next month.

In Portland, I'll be making Japanese X and + blocks, showing how easy it is to get those intersections to intersect:

I also get tiny bonus triangles from the corners that are cut off.  They finish to 1" and are so cute.  I wouldn't be likely to create 1" finished half square triangles, but these are too cute to throw away so I'll show several ways to use them.

The other event is Make It University!  This is a one hour, hands-on project that costs just $10.  Each student gets a kit with everything they need to make the project.  All they have to do is drop in, buy a ticket, and they are good to go, no pre-registration necessary.

Finding a project that can be completed, or almost completed, in a hour is a challenge.  And I have to prepare the 25 kits for class.  This will take some time too.  Since I have 2 sessions to kit for, I think I'll need to call in my troops for a "help me" day.  I'll teach them the one hour class to be sure it works well in that timeframe, then have them help me make the kits. 

In Chicago, I am offering  Hand Piecing the Lemoyne Star, yes, the real one with the dreaded Y seam:

This is a 6" star and one I really enjoy making by hand.  Having a hand project ready at all times is a must for a lot of quilters.  I can't take my sewing machine to the doctor's office, but a baggy with the basics of this block is easy to whip out and sew a bit on. 

In Portland, I am offering the HexieStar, 8" across the middle:

 

 

I found this on Pinterest and have gotten permission from the designer to offer it as a class.  You can find her free pattern here. Her pattern is available for your personal use only, which is why I sought her permission before going forward with this class.  Please abide by copyright rules--artists deserve that respect for their work.

Here is my question to you about HexieStars:  The top one is English paper pieced over freezer paper templates, while the bottom one is hand-pieced, with sewing lines drawn on the back of each piece.  In a one hour class, would you prefer to only be given one set of instructions, EPP OR hand-piecing, or would you like to be able to choose in class which method you want to do?  The kit prep time for this project will be intense, and my friends will come in handy here.  I need your input on this one.

So, along with everything else I'm working on, I've now got another couple of deadlines to work toward.  I love to teach so this is not a chore, it's fun! 

And, if you are in Chicago and/or Portland be sure to come to our shows and look for the Open Studios and Make It University opportunities we bring to you!  It's a great way to sit for a bit and learn something.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara